[HPforGrownups] Whose prophecy? (was Re: Why Harry?)

[Kathryn Cawte]

No: HPFGUIDX 54592

 
  
> Troels>
> 
> ...edited... What I would
> really like to have explained is why on earth he would want to save
> Lily - why did he attempt to get her move over?
> 
> ...edited...
> 
> We need a far more compelling reason for Voldemort to wish to
> spare Lily.
> 
> ...edited...
> 
> What I would like to see is a theory that can combine the
> compelling reason to kill Harry with a (not quite as) compelling
> reason to spare Lily.
> 
 
bboy_mn:
 
What makes you think Voldemort wanted to spare Lily or that he would have?
 <edited> 
I don't recall anything in the actual event of Lily and James's death
that indicates that Voldemort had any intention of sparing Lily.
<edited> 
Consider the implications of what he seemed to be offering her. Step
aside and let me kill your son, and I might let you go. Who in their
right mind would consider that a legitimate offer, but cause who in
the right mind would offer it with any expectation what so ever that
the offer would be accepted.
 
Scenario:
 
V: I've come here to kill James and Harry in cold blood, in a
ruthless, uncaring, and cruel manner.
 
J: Lily, I'll try to hold him off. Take Harry and Run.
 
V: BANG! (James is dead)
 
L: No! Not Harry! I'll do anything! Take me, just don't hurt Harry!
 
V: Stand aside! Stand aside, you silly girl!
 
L: Oh I see, you aren't going to kill me. Well, why did you say so?
Here (Lily steps aside) go ahead kill Harry. I can always make more
babies.
 
 
Is there anybody on any side of this scenerio; me, you, Lily,
Voldemort, who actually believes it's possible for the scene to play
out that way? It's ridiculous. First, no evil overlord can be trusted
at his word. Second, no parent is going to step aside, and even if
they did, no evil overlord is going to leave one person standing in
the end. I could just never happen that way.
 
Any implication that Voldemort might have spared Lily is irrational as
far as I'm concerned. He didn't mean it, and she didn't believe it;
simple as that.
 

K -

But Harry's protection came from Lily giving her life to protect him - if
there had been no possibility of Lily being spared then I don't see how that
would work. There is no suggestion that *James'* sacrifice gave Harry any
measure of protection even though he clearly made a decision to stay and
fight rather than try and run. 

James stood his ground to try and give Lily and Harry a chance to escape
even knowing (as he must have done) that he couldn't defeat Voldemort. Lily
offered her life to save Harry. *Lily* is the one credited with giving Harry
the protection so there must be some difference between their sacrifices.
Obviously (to me any way) it is that James was going to die anyway, he was
one of Voldeomrt's targets, Lily wasn't.

Note Voldemort's response to Lily's offer. She begs him to take her instead
- he doesn't say "what do you mean instead you stupid woman, I'm here for
all of you!". Equally he doesn't just AK her and carry on to Harry. He gives
her the chance to stand aside - I admit Voldemort probably isn't the most
trustworthy of individuals but why make the offer if he didn't (at least at
the moment he made it) intend to honour it. It really would have been just
as simple to kill her and step over the body. Whether we could ever
seriously expect a parent to accept such an offer is totally irrelevent to
whether the offer is made seriously. Voldemort is afaik a) not a parent and
b) evil also quite possible c) totally and utterly insane - he may well have
considered it a perfectly reasonable offer and one that he would in her
place accept.

And as for "No evil overlord is going to leave one person standing in the
end" - read any work of fantasy or sci-fi, watch a film for goodness sake -
Evil overlords are always making that kind of stupid mistake. Clearly if you
or I decided to take over the universe we'd be much more effective than your
average evil overlord, but Voldemort is prone to all the traditional evil
overlord flaws, and so are his DEs. ... Leaving Harry alive (admittedly not
intentional originally but he has had him at his mercy since and allowed him
to escape), leaving Neville alive for that matter (if anyone has a *more*
compelling reason to hunt down and try to kill V than Harry does it's got to
be Neville), gloating and explaining evil plans before trying to kill your
enemy - Quirrelmort does it, Riddle does it, both Lucius and Draco show
signs that in that position the sound of their own voice would win out over
expediency .... etc. 

K